Beige Book Brighter

The Federal Reserve’s Beige Book, a compilation of mostly anecdotal information from the 12 Federal Reserve districts was generally more upbeat than most recent Beige books have been: “Manufacturing activity continued to expand in almost all Districts, with relatively strong growth seen in metal fabrication and the automotive industries. Reports also showed steady to increasing [...]

WASHINGTON — A Federal Reserve survey says economic growth increased throughout the United States from April through mid-May, fueled by home construction, consumer spending and steady hiring.
Eleven of the Fed’s banking districts reported “modest to moderate” economic growth, according to the Beige Book survey released Wednesday. The 12th, in Dallas, reported strong growth.

Fed's Beige Book: Reports from the twelve Federal Reserve Districts indicated that economic activity generally continued to expand since the last report, though a few Districts indicated some deceleration. Some slowing in the pace of growth was noted in the New York, Philadelphia, Atlanta, and Chicago Districts. In contrast, Dallas characterized that region's economy as accelerating. Other Districts indicated that growth continued at a steady pace....

WASHINGTON — U.S. economic activity continued to expand in most districts from early January to late February but conditions varied considerably across regions and within sectors, the Federal Reserve said on Wednesday.
The decidedly mixed picture illustrates the headache Fed policymakers face when they next meet to decide the path of interest rates on March 15-16.
Consumer spending increased in the majority of districts, the Fed said in its Beige Book report of anecdotal information collected from business contacts across the country.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. labour market tightened modestly in recent weeks with some upward pressure on wages as employers found it increasingly difficult to fill jobs across skill levels, the Federal Reserve said on Wednesday.
U.S. economic activity continued to expand at a modest pace in most regions from early October through mid-November, the Fed said in its Beige Book report of anecdotal information on business activity collected from contacts nationwide.

WASHINGTON — U.S. economic activity continued to expand in October and November, with lower gasoline prices boosting consumer spending, the Federal Reserve said on Wednesday.
In its Beige Book report of anecdotal information on business activity collected from contacts nationwide on or before Nov. 24, the U.S. central bank said a number of its districts remained optimistic about the outlook.

While largely considered among the less relevant of Fed indicators, once one gets beyond the traditional "modest to moderate expansion pace" summary of the economy, the Fed's Beige Book release does in fact contain informative, and oftentimes useful anecdotes about the state of the economy as disclosed to the Federal Reserve. And since the latest, February, beige book comes at a time of major economic overhaul, it contained several particularly notable observations.

The Federal Reserve just released its latest Beige Book report. The report showed that for the second straight time, economic activity expanded in all twelve districts. Manufacturing reports were mixed, while consumer spending grew in most districts at rates ranging from slight to moderate, with few changes since the last report.